ENGLEWOOD, Colo. - The San Diego Chargers, Dallas Cowboys and New England Patriots have two things in common. They each shut down the Denver Broncos' running game, and they all use a 3-4 defensive alignment with three defensive linemen and four linebackers.

The bad news for the Broncos is the Pittsburgh Steelers, their opponent in Sunday's AFC Championship Game, also use a 3-4 defense. Most NFL teams run a 4-3 defense with four defensive linemen and three linebackers.

San Diego and New England were two of the four teams to hold Denver to less than 100 yards this season, including the playoffs. The Broncos also had less than 100 yards rushing against Miami when they abandoned the running game in the second half of a blowout, and against Baltimore, which used four defensive linemen and four linebackers for much of the game.

Denver needed overtime to crack 100 yards rushing against Dallas and its 3-4 defense on Thanksgiving. The Broncos had 89 rushing yards through four quarters. Ron Dayne broke a 55-yard run in overtime.
Three of the toughest games Denver had running the ball this season came against a 3-4 defense, but The Broncos don't think the 3-4 alignment itself is their problem.

"It doesn't hurt to have good players," right tackle George Foster said. "If you run a 3-4 with (lousy) sucky players, it's not going to work. Most teams that run it have good players."
Broncos Coach Mike Shanahan agreed with Foster. He said the teams that ran the 3-4 defense and shut down Denver's running game were tough to run against because of their talented personnel, not the 3-4 alignment.

However, Pittsburgh also has superior talent at defensive line and linebacker. The Steelers were third in the NFL in rushing defense during the regular season.

"When you get a good front seven, like Pittsburgh has and how they play, it can keep you off balance because they're very quick and very talented," Shanahan said.

Running back Mike Anderson said 3-4 defenses are difficult to run against because players have different responsibilities. In a 3-4 defense, linemen usually engage with the offensive lineman in front of them and hold their ground. In a 4-3 defense, defenders are usually responsible for penetrating a gap between linemen, and the Broncos are adept at finding a hole when they get out of position.

Typically one of the keys to a strong 3-4 defense is a big nose tackle who lines up over center. San Diego has Jamal Williams, New England has Vince Wilfork and Pittsburgh has Casey Hampton, all of whom weigh more than 325 pounds.

"They don't go anywhere," Anderson said of linemen in a 3-4 defense.
Running back Tatum Bell said teams that run 3-4 defenses are usually a little more unpredictable. On most plays at least one linebacker blitzes, and it's hard to figure where the blitzes will come from.

"It's more difficult," Bell said. "Somebody's coming every play and you don't know where they're coming from. It's tricky."

Ticket issues

The Broncos won't make any special request to their fans to dissuade them from selling tickets to Steelers fans this week. Steelers fans who travel well and are often a loud presence in opposing stadiums.

Two weeks ago Cincinnati coach Marvin Lewis said he hoped Bengals fans would not sell playoff tickets to Steelers fans. Before last week's Colts-Steelers playoff game at Indianapolis, the Colts sent an e-mail to fans signed by team president Bill Polian and coach Tony Dungy that asked fans to not sell tickets to Steelers fans.

"We trust our fans to come to the games, root, and not sell to the other teams," Broncos spokesman Jim Saccomano said.

The Broncos took one step to avoid being overrun by Steelers fans. Only fans in the Rocky Mountain region could buy tickets during the first hour of Sunday's public sale. The Broncos sold out of about 15,000 tickets in less than 30 minutes

tk13

01-18-2006, 04:12 PM

That's interesting, the running game might have been shut down, but they were still 5-0 against those teams listed...

Taco John

01-18-2006, 04:44 PM

The thing is, you can slow down our running game, but you can't "shut it down." The reason is because we keep running, and playing the field position battle. Even if our running game is getting stopped, our coaches will keep on calling runs, because they trust the defense will get the stop. It turns into a field position battle, ala New England, where the pressure is on the other quarterback to make a mistake. Brady did, and we cashed in on it.

Garcia Bronco

01-18-2006, 04:56 PM

Well...we're as 3-4 tested as we can be. It does give us troubles.

ASS11

01-18-2006, 04:58 PM

The thing is, you can slow down our running game, but you can't "shut it down."

The Patriots did just that....

Your vaunted running game disappeared the other night. You scored three touchdowns on drives totaling 17 yards.

Baby Lee

01-18-2006, 05:09 PM

The thing is, you can slow down our running game, but you can't "shut it down." The reason is because we keep running, and playing the field position battle. Even if our running game is getting stopped, our coaches will keep on calling runs, because they trust the defense will get the stop. It turns into a field position battle, ala New England, where the pressure is on the other quarterback to make a mistake. Brady did, and we cashed in on it.
Sounds like Martyball is alive and well in Denver. ;)

Taco John

01-18-2006, 05:24 PM

The Patriots did just that....

Your vaunted running game disappeared the other night. You scored three touchdowns on drives totaling 17 yards.

Well, actually, no they didn't. We got 96 yards on 32 carries. We never once abandonded the running game. It never disappeared. Plus, we got two touchdowns from the running game. Oh yeah, and we won.

Taco John

01-18-2006, 05:26 PM

Sounds like Martyball is alive and well in Denver. ;)

Works for me. I don't have the stigma about Martyball that I'd imgine that you do. Our RBBC has been producing for us all year long, and right now we're in the AFC title game. I don't have a problem getting there by forcing the run and wearing them down for the 4th quarter while protecting the quarterback from having to carry the team. I don't have a problem with that at all.

Baby Lee

01-18-2006, 05:27 PM

Works for me. I don't have the stigma about Martyball that I'd imgine that you do. Our RBBC has been producing for us all year long, and right now we're in the AFC title game. I don't have a problem getting there by forcing the run and wearing them down for the 4th quarter while protecting the quarterback from having to carry the team. I don't have a problem with that at all.
Are you new?

Taco John

01-18-2006, 05:27 PM

You scored three touchdowns...

Totally

ASS11

01-18-2006, 05:29 PM

Well, actually, no they didn't. We got 96 yards on 32 carries.

ROFL

Who cares. Your defense won the game, not your running game. Your offense came almost to a complete standstill. You probably wouldn't have scored a touchdown if it hadn't been for the gifts bestowed upon you.

Think you can mount an offensive drive worth a crap against Pittsburgh? I doubt a Bill Cowher-coached team will turn it over 5 times.

gcbroncos

01-18-2006, 06:08 PM

The Patriots did just that....

Your vaunted running game disappeared the other night. You scored three touchdowns on drives totaling 17 yards.

so what....

as long as we win.....i don't care

gcbroncos

01-18-2006, 06:10 PM

Sounds like Martyball is alive and well in Denver. ;)

Marty ball + SB wins = Mike Shanahan

i can live with that

gcbroncos

01-18-2006, 06:16 PM

ROFL

Who cares. Your defense won the game, not your running game. Your offense came almost to a complete standstill. You probably wouldn't have scored a touchdown if it hadn't been for the gifts bestowed upon you.

Think you can mount an offensive drive worth a crap against Pittsburgh? I doubt a Bill Cowher-coached team will turn it over 5 times.

you're funny.....

you say "who cares" that we ran for 96 yds......

dude who cares about any of that mumbo jumbo....we won the game

sedated

01-18-2006, 06:26 PM

GO AWAY DONKS FANS!!!!

YOUR KIND IS NOT WANTED HERE!!!

Go gloat while you're in your nightly circle jerk.

Amnorix

01-18-2006, 07:40 PM

Well, actually, no they didn't. We got 96 yards on 32 carries. We never once abandonded the running game. It never disappeared. Plus, we got two touchdowns from the running game. Oh yeah, and we won.

3.0 per carry is pretty "shut down".

Let me put it this way, the Pats didn't lose because of your OFFENSE, that's for darn sure.

ASS11

01-18-2006, 07:41 PM

I think Pittsburgh's front seven is probably better than New England's, too. Denver will get shut down again.

ChiefsCountry

01-18-2006, 07:52 PM

Actually the Broncos' nemesis is Jake Plummer. ;)

Taco John

01-18-2006, 08:15 PM

3.0 per carry is pretty "shut down".

Let me put it this way, the Pats didn't lose because of your OFFENSE, that's for darn sure.

Sure enough. You lost because of our TEAM.

I'll take 32 carries for 96 yards in any game that we win. Just so long as we're not abandoning the run. I don't care that we couldn't get the ball rolling on the ground in quarters 1 through 3. What I care about is the fact that we controlled the ball in the fourth quarter 11:59 to 3:09. Chew that over a little bit. What I care about is the fact that in the 4th quarter, we averaged over 5 yards per carry on 11 carries. We never gave up on the running game, and it eventually busted them. Not only did we manage to win the field position battle all night, but we also won the time of possession battle, especially in the fourth quarter. Oh yeah, and we managed to win the scoreboard battle too.

That didn't happen because our running game is insufficient. Say what you want about our offense after a win. They executed the game plan to perfection, and we walked out winners because of it.

ASS11

01-18-2006, 08:33 PM

Say what you want about our offense after a win. They executed the game plan to perfection, and we walked out winners because of it.

ROFL

Your offense would have walked out responsible for the loss if they hadn't started three drives inside the 20 yard line.

Your defense bailed the offense out.

Taco John

01-18-2006, 09:05 PM

And just how were we going to lose that game? We never lost control of the scoreboard.

You can make whatever "IF" scenarios you want, but at the end of the day, our gameplan was executed and we walked out with a ticket to the Divisional Champioship Game.

gcbroncos

01-18-2006, 09:19 PM

ROFL

Your offense would have walked out responsible for the loss if they hadn't started three drives inside the 20 yard line.

Your defense bailed the offense out.

so what....

who cares.....

we won.....

Bowser

01-18-2006, 09:29 PM

This is going to be a great game.

Denver should go deep early and often. They aren't going to run on Pittsburg. No play-action or bootlegs, either. Just take a five step drop, and let it fly.

Normally, I'd say this would be a no-brainer in who would win. But I never thought "Air Roethlisberger" would go into Indy and outduel Peyton.

ASS11

01-18-2006, 09:33 PM

And just how were we going to lose that game? We never lost control of the scoreboard.

Exactly. Because of your defense.

If the Patriots had taken a lead (and they had an opportunity, which Champ snuffed out impressively) your offense had demonstrated it wasn't up to the task of mounting a drive to take it back.

gcbroncos

01-18-2006, 09:53 PM

Exactly. Because of your defense.

If the Patriots had taken a lead (and they had an opportunity, which Champ snuffed out impressively) your offense had demonstrated it wasn't up to the task of mounting a drive to take it back.

so what...

who cares...

we won

ASS11

01-18-2006, 09:55 PM

so what...

who cares...

we won

You've missed the point about six times in this thread so you should just exit.

RealSNR

01-18-2006, 10:04 PM

so what...

who cares...

we wonExactly. That game doesn't matter.

The question we're asking is will you win against the Steelers with that kind of offensive output

gcbroncos

01-18-2006, 10:05 PM

You've missed the point about six times in this thread so you should just exit.

No i haven't but you have....

the only thing that matters is wins and losses.....

so trust me...i'm missing no points...

i know you were ignoring me...that's why i kept posting the same thing..

We are 6-1 versus 3-4 defenses.....

if we struggle to run then we win other ways...

that is the point.....:thumb:

gcbroncos

01-18-2006, 10:09 PM

Exactly. That game doesn't matter.

The question we're asking is will you win against the Steelers with that kind of offensive output

I disagree the game does matter...

We won't be able to run the ball every game......

teams that pass well will have it shut down at times...teams that run well will have it shut down at times....

the game matters because you use that to gameplan how to win in other ways..

if we are a championship team..we'll win even if we struggle to run just as we've done all year long....

Taco John

01-18-2006, 10:23 PM

You've missed the point about six times in this thread so you should just exit.

You've missed the point more than six times in this thread.

Our offense did what it did all season. We weren't shut down at all. We took what was given us, played the field position battle, and capitalized on their mistakes. I don't care what the longest scoring drive they had was. The fact is, our offense controlled the clock. Our defense forced mistakes. We have a complete team, and beatin gthe World Champs showed it.

Taco John

01-18-2006, 10:24 PM

The question we're asking is will you win against the Steelers with that kind of offensive output

The answer is "yes."

I think we go in with a similar game plan as we did with New England. Stick with the run and play field position all night. Force them to defend the run by staying committed to it, and then take advantage of what that opens up for the pass. The goal is to wear them out for the fourth quarter.

What a lot of people aren't realizing about the New England game is that in the fourth quarter we averaged 5 yards per carry. Take away Mike Anderson's 18 yard run and we still averaged just over 4 yards per carry. What's better than that is that we owned the 4th quarter clock 11:59 to 3:09.

It's the same game plan we've used all year... Run the ball and then take what they give you in the passing game. Don't force it if it's not there. Punt it and play the field position battle. Put pressure on them and force them to make the critical mistake, and then CAPITALIZE when they do.

Taco John

01-18-2006, 10:31 PM

Also, as far as this thread topic goes, after the New England game this past week, a team that we beat twice, Denver is now 6-0 on the season against the 3-4 defense...

Rausch

01-18-2006, 10:35 PM

The answer is "yes."

I think we go in with a similar game plan as we did with New England. Stick with the run and play field position all night. Force them to defend the run by staying committed to it, and then take advantage of what that opens up for the pass. The goal is to wear them out for the fourth quarter.

It's the same game plan we've used all year... Run the ball and then take what they give you in the passing game. Don't force it if it's not there. Punt it and play the field position battle. Put pressure on them and force them to make the critical mistake, and then CAPITALIZE when they do.

I'd bet good money that's exactly what Cowher is preaching to his team as well.

Only he'd throw in two-bull$#it-trickery plays that are sure to net one of you two 7 pts...

ASS11

01-18-2006, 10:35 PM

If your offense plays at the same pathetic level against Pittsburgh, and 5 turnovers don't fall in your lap....YOU WILL LOSE.

You simply can't count on getting 21 points out of 17 yards of offense every game.

Taco John

01-18-2006, 10:40 PM

Like I said before. This is the way our offense played all season. You don't need to be the best offense in the game when you've got superior game planning and can play some defense.

PatsWin2002

01-18-2006, 10:41 PM

The answer is "yes."

I think we go in with a similar game plan as we did with New England. Stick with the run and play field position all night. Force them to defend the run by staying committed to it, and then take advantage of what that opens up for the pass. The goal is to wear them out for the fourth quarter.

What a lot of people aren't realizing about the New England game is that in the fourth quarter we averaged 5 yards per carry. Take away Mike Anderson's 18 yard run and we still averaged just over 4 yards per carry. What's better than that is that we owned the 4th quarter clock 11:59 to 3:09.

It's the same game plan we've used all year... Run the ball and then take what they give you in the passing game. Don't force it if it's not there. Punt it and play the field position battle. Put pressure on them and force them to make the critical mistake, and then CAPITALIZE when they do.

You would've expected the Pats to lose Time of Possession in the 4th quarter because we were trying to throw to get points back.

You say Denver will use the same gameplan this week. If Pittsburgh recycles our perfect gameplan they stand a good chance of winning.......depending what "obstacles" they have to overcome.

Cowher doesn't have to study to hard this week. Belichick already laid it out perfectly. It just needs to be executed in a more mistake-free fashion.

PatsWin2002

01-18-2006, 10:42 PM

If your offense plays at the same pathetic level against Pittsburgh, and 5 turnovers don't fall in your lap....YOU WILL LOSE.

You simply can't count on getting 21 points out of 17 yards of offense every game.

You win a cookie. :clap:

If I say any of that it's "sour grapes". BTW, you're doing a great job. :drool:

Taco John

01-18-2006, 10:56 PM

You would've expected the Pats to lose Time of Possession in the 4th quarter because we were trying to throw to get points back.

You say Denver will use the same gameplan this week. If Pittsburgh recycles our perfect gameplan they stand a good chance of winning.......depending what "obstacles" they have to overcome.

Cowher doesn't have to study to hard this week. Belichick already laid it out perfectly. It just needs to be executed in a more mistake-free fashion.

Yeah well, any team could say that this year. It's pretty hard to play mistake free football against the Broncos. The teams that managed to do it walked away with wins.

ASS11

01-18-2006, 10:57 PM

Like I said before. This is the way our offense played all season. You don't need to be the best offense in the game when you've got superior game planning and can play some defense.

Yeah, you've had two or three touchdown drives under twenty yards in every game. :rolleyes:

Deberg_1990

01-18-2006, 10:58 PM

oh and dont forget the KC Chiefs game plan as well. Basically you make John Lynch your bitch all game long.

PatsWin2002

01-18-2006, 10:58 PM

Yeah well, any team could say that this year. It's pretty hard to play mistake free football against the Broncos. The teams that managed to do it walked away with wins.

You took that remarkably well. :p

Taco John

01-18-2006, 11:06 PM

Yeah, you've had two or three touchdown drives under twenty yards in every game. :rolleyes:

You're just not going to get it no matter how many times I explain it so I'm just not going to bother, and take satisfaction in the fact that it drives you bat shit crazy to see the Broncos with a shot to advance to the Superbowl

The bottom line for me is that I was never worried even once during the game. I understood the game plan and supported it the entire time. That support paid off in the fourth quarter when the Pats were forced to change their game plan and we were rolling over their defense and eating up clock.

Whether our scores came on long drives or short drives is immaterial to me. Our offense scored when we needed them to, no matter how long the drive was, and they had to get through the World Champs to do it.

ASS11

01-18-2006, 11:07 PM

I'm sure you were really confident when the Pats were knocking on your doorstep and ready to take the lead.

Fortunately Champ saved your bacon. That guy is your team MVP.

Taco John

01-18-2006, 11:11 PM

I'm sure you were really confident when the Pats were knocking on your doorstep and ready to take the lead.

Fortunately Champ saved your bacon. That guy is your team MVP.

It's not like they were taking a two score lead there or anything. I don't generally panic until the deficit is 10 points with the other team looking to score seven more...

Halfcan

01-19-2006, 12:19 AM

How gay-telling the public not to sell their tickets. Tell that to the scalpers who can triple their money on some out of towner. We just out yell them at Arrowhead so you don't really notice them.

Garcia Bronco

01-19-2006, 06:25 AM

How gay-telling the public not to sell their tickets. Tell that to the scalpers who can triple their money on some out of towner. We just out yell them at Arrowhead so you don't really notice them.

So...you're defending ticket scalpers?

bkkcoh

01-19-2006, 06:43 AM

..
The bottom line for me is that I was never worried even once during the game. I understood the game plan and supported it the entire time. That support paid off in the fourth quarter when the Pats were forced to change their game plan and we were rolling over their defense and eating up clock.

...

I am glad Taco has a position within the Broncos coaching staff so that he is aware of what the Rat has in the game plan.......... He may have input into the game plan also. Maybe he had more influence in the December game in KC and that is why they lost............ Maybe the other losses also. If the Rat wouldn't have used Taco's advice, they may have gone undefeated.....

Way to go Taco... :clap:

:p

jspchief

01-19-2006, 08:47 AM

If the Steelers can play D like NE did, which they probably will if not better. And if PIT's offense takes a cue from NE's second half to pick up the blitz, the Steelers could run away with this.

Broncos fans can say "we won the game and it doesn't matter", but the fact remains NE gave Pittsburgh the blueprint to beat Denver. All they have to do is execute it, and secure the ball.

Amnorix

01-19-2006, 08:52 AM

If the Steelers can play D like NE did, which they probably will if not better. And if PIT's offense takes a cue from NE's second half to pick up the blitz, the Steelers could run away with this.

Broncos fans can say "we won the game and it doesn't matter", but the fact remains NE gave Pittsburgh the blueprint to beat Denver. All they have to do is execute it, and secure the ball.

Right. Patriots and Broncos had about 120 snaps on offense and defense (doesn't count special teams). Carve out the three turnovers on offense, and the Patriots outplayed the Broncos by a fairly wide margin, overall, on the remaining plays.

Turnovers ruin everything. Poor special teams play CAN ruin everything as well.

That's a credit to the Broncos defense in at least some of the cases (the first three turnovers) and in other cases just the Patriots playing poorly (Brown fumble certainly comes to mind). The final turnover, Brady's pick, is just a case of desperation and not really relevant.

PatsWin2002

01-19-2006, 08:57 AM

If the Steelers can play D like NE did, which they probably will if not better. And if PIT's offense takes a cue from NE's second half to pick up the blitz, the Steelers could run away with this.

Broncos fans can say "we won the game and it doesn't matter", but the fact remains NE gave Pittsburgh the blueprint to beat Denver. All they have to do is execute it, and secure the ball.

You, too, win a cookie.

jspchief

01-19-2006, 09:02 AM

Right. Patriots and Broncos had about 120 snaps on offense and defense (doesn't count special teams). Carve out the three turnovers on offense, and the Patriots outplayed the Broncos by a fairly wide margin, overall, on the remaining plays.

Turnovers ruin everything. Poor special teams play CAN ruin everything as well.

That's a credit to the Broncos defense in at least some of the cases (the first three turnovers) and in other cases just the Patriots playing poorly (Brown fumble certainly comes to mind). The final turnover, Brady's pick, is just a case of desperation and not really relevant.I wouldn't go so far as saying you outplayed Denver. It took your offense an entire half to figure out how to exploit their blitz that should have been game-planned for all along. But your defense was fairly effective, and your offense did eventually figure it out.

Denver's a good team. They play solid defense, run well, and Plummer has managed games well this year. I don't think it will be easy for Pittsburgh by any stretch. But I do think they can learn enough from the NE game to know how to win. It's just a matter of execution.

htismaqe

01-19-2006, 09:13 AM

I wouldn't go so far as saying you outplayed Denver. It took your offense an entire half to figure out how to exploit their blitz that should have been game-planned for all along. But your defense was fairly effective, and your offense did eventually figure it out.

Denver's a good team. They play solid defense, run well, and Plummer has managed games well this year. I don't think it will be easy for Pittsburgh by any stretch. But I do think they can learn enough from the NE game to know how to win. It's just a matter of execution.

Yes, it's just a matter of execution.

But AT Invesco, that's no small feat.

Amnorix

01-19-2006, 09:13 AM

I wouldn't go so far as saying you outplayed Denver. It took your offense an entire half to figure out how to exploit their blitz that should have been game-planned for all along. But your defense was fairly effective, and your offense did eventually figure it out.

The more I think about this game, the more annoyed I become.

Suffice to say that during MOST of the first half, there was a slight advantage in Denver's favor. Not enough for either side to score, but I'll grant that they slightly outplayed us. Keep in mind that they had a solid drive, but got stoned at the 1 yard line. So give them those 3 points if they had kicked the figgie.

Pats also got a figgie. So call it 3-3 (it was actually 3-0 Pats) WHEN

Denver goes 3 and out (or nearly so) and the Pats get back the ball. Momentum is CLEARLY shifting to New England. We've weathered the storm, it's 3-0 in our favor, and we're driving at the end of the ahlf. On 2nd (or 3rd) and 2, we conver the first down, BUT FUMBLE. Credit Denver's defense.

Next play, bogus interference call. Then an easy TD. Then we fumble the ensuing kickoff. We stop their offense (3 and out I think) but they kick a long figgie to make it 10-3.

Second half -- Denver starts with the ball to open the half. We stone them. They punt. We drive a long way, kick a figgie. 10-6.

Denver gets the ball back. We stone them. They punt. We drive a LONG way down to their 5. Their defense rises to the challenge on 1st and 2nd down, and now it's 3rd and 5.

It's clear at this piont that the halftime adjustments are perfect. Their offense can do nothing, and we're picking up the blitz well and moving the ball no problem. At worst, we should end this series losing 10-9, or hopefully winning 13-10. With their offense's ineffectualness, I'm pretty confident of winning the game at this point, despite our prior stupid mistakes.

Then the Bailey pick, the run back, the easy TD, and it's 17-6. They've scored all 17 points off turnovers. Twice they scored TDs on, essentially, one yard drives.

Denver's a good team. They play solid defense, run well, and Plummer has managed games well this year. I don't think it will be easy for Pittsburgh by any stretch. But I do think they can learn enough from the NE game to know how to win. It's just a matter of execution.

I agree, Denver is a very good team. And I'm definitely not saying we deserved to win. And you have to credit their defense for many of our problems, but FOUR turnovers is self-destruction. We had like 7 in the prior TEN GAMES. One was caused by the fugging PUNTER!!!

htismaqe

01-19-2006, 09:17 AM

The more I think about this game, the more annoyed I become.

Suffice to say that during MOST of the first half, there was a slight advantage in Denver's favor. Not enough for either side to score, but I'll grant that they slightly outplayed us. Keep in mind that they had a solid drive, but got stoned at the 1 yard line. So give them those 3 points if they had kicked the figgie.

Pats also got a figgie. So call it 3-3 (it was actually 3-0 Pats) WHEN

Denver goes 3 and out (or nearly so) and the Pats get back the ball. Momentum is CLEARLY shifting to New England. We've weathered the storm, it's 3-0 in our favor, and we're driving at the end of the ahlf. On 2nd (or 3rd) and 2, we conver the first down, BUT FUMBLE. Credit Denver's defense.

Next play, bogus interference call. Then an easy TD. Then we fumble the ensuing kickoff. We stop their offense (3 and out I think) but they kick a long figgie to make it 10-3.

Second half -- Denver starts with the ball to open the half. We stone them. They punt. We drive a long way, kick a figgie. 10-6.

Denver gets the ball back. We stone them. They punt. We drive a LONG way down to their 5. Their defense rises to the challenge on 1st and 2nd down, and now it's 3rd and 5.

It's clear at this piont that the halftime adjustments are perfect. Their offense can do nothing, and we're picking up the blitz well and moving the ball no problem. At worst, we should end this series losing 10-9, or hopefully winning 13-10. With their offense's ineffectualness, I'm pretty confident of winning the game at this point, despite our prior stupid mistakes.

Then the Bailey pick, the run back, the easy TD, and it's 17-6. They've scored all 17 points off turnovers. Twice they scored TDs on, essentially, one yard drives.

I agree, Denver is a very good team. And I'm definitely not saying we deserved to win. And you have to credit their defense for many of our problems, but FOUR turnovers is self-destruction. We had like 7 in the prior TEN GAMES. One was caused by the fugging PUNTER!!!

THAT punter is the only one in the league that does roids. Check out those guns! :D

Mile High Mania

01-19-2006, 09:33 AM

Uh oh, jspchief used the word... 'blueprint'. Ah well.

Amnorix, quit beating yourself up about it. All good things must come to an end...

The Steelers pose a hell of a challenge, there's no doubt about it. If they can pull off the feat of winning another road playoff game, then they deserve everything they get.

As I mentioned last week, Denver's defense gives up a lot of yards, but they don't allow alot of points.

Both teams in this game are very similar in their styles, so it should be a good one to watch.

Bring the noise!

Amnorix

01-19-2006, 09:42 AM

Amnorix, quit beating yourself up about it. All good things must come to an end...

Tell me about it.

But IMHO nothing has necessarily come to an end. We missed the playoffs in '02, but in all honesty, if healthy next year's team is more talented than our '01 SB winner or our '02 missed-the-playoffs team.

the rest of the AFC is more talented than they were then, too, so it'll be very competitive, but Brady is 28, Belichick ain't going anywhere. Seymour is like 27, Bruschi, Branch, Graham, Watson, Dillon, Faulk, etc. are all back, hopefully Harrison is back (not clue how good he'll be).

Even better, instead of a grueling schedule involving the AFC West and the NFC South, we get the cupcake AFC South and NFC North next year. In the AFC East, Jets and Buffalo are undergoing coaching changes, as are a number of non-division opponents next year (Houston, Minn, Detroit).

Suffice to say, I think we'll "make the dance" as Parcells used to call the playoffs, next year without doubt. And barring injury I like our chances just fine. :D

Mile High Mania

01-19-2006, 09:52 AM

You should know by now how quickly teams and a conference can change from year to year. Nothing at this point about the 2006 season should be considered a cake walk to the dance.

Plus, injuries can derail a team, right? You just never know.

PatsWin2002

01-19-2006, 09:54 AM

I think we'll "make the dance" as Parcells used to call the playoffs

Didn't Parcells call the playoffs "The Tournament"?

Amnorix

01-19-2006, 09:57 AM

You should know by now how quickly teams and a conference can change from year to year. Nothing at this point about the 2006 season should be considered a cake walk to the dance.

Plus, injuries can derail a team, right? You just never know.

Only if the injury happens to Mr. Tom Brady. Seriously, we have had so many injuries the last two years it's beyond absurd. Hopefully we'll get a little lucky in that department next year, instead of continuing to be very unlucky.

The best that can be said for injuries over teh last two years is that "at least Brady didn't go down".

Amnorix

01-19-2006, 09:59 AM

Didn't Parcells call the playoffs "The Tournament"?

That too.

Amnorix

01-19-2006, 10:00 AM

Didn't Parcells call the playoffs "The Tournament"?

Out of curiosity, why does an apparent Pats fan has, as his avatar, a picture of Belichick that makes it look like he's having a drug-induced psychotic episode?

PatsWin2002

01-19-2006, 10:17 AM

Out of curiosity, why does an apparent Pats fan has, as his avatar, a picture of Belichick that makes it look like he's having a drug-induced psychotic episode?

It's from a Miami game a few years ago. I was using the Av on a Fins board. When I came here it was the size I needed so I reused it.

Mile High Mania

01-19-2006, 10:31 AM

I don't know if it has been pointed out previously in this thread, surely TJ or Garcia mentioned it. But, while the 3-4 may be Denver's nemesis and the author referenced the Chargers, Cowboys and Patriots as his examples... Denver was 5-0 against those 3 teams this season.

ameliorated1216

01-19-2006, 10:57 AM

My prediction is 31-20 Steelers. Oh, and someone better tell Jake not to throw on the same side of the field that Polamalu is on. I also predict Lynch will get fined for something.

Garcia Bronco

01-19-2006, 12:19 PM

I don't know if it has been pointed out previously in this thread, surely TJ or Garcia mentioned it. But, while the 3-4 may be Denver's nemesis and the author referenced the Chargers, Cowboys and Patriots as his examples... Denver was 5-0 against those 3 teams this season.

We were 6-1 against 3-4 teams this year...and the Ravens ran like it said a 4-4 type of akignment

Taco John

01-19-2006, 12:25 PM

I am glad Taco has a position within the Broncos coaching staff so that he is aware of what the Rat has in the game plan.......... He may have input into the game plan also. Maybe he had more influence in the December game in KC and that is why they lost............ Maybe the other losses also. If the Rat wouldn't have used Taco's advice, they may have gone undefeated.....

Way to go Taco... :clap:

:p

ROFL

Dude, just because you don't understand football, doesn't mean that everybody doesn't. Discerning a game plan isn't hard at all when you know what you're looking at. It's especially not hard when you're watching the same game plan week after week.

Any time you have any questions about how to decipher a game plan, just ask. You can post it here. There are enough smart people around who understand enough about football to be able to answer for you.

Taco John

01-19-2006, 12:32 PM

If the Steelers can play D like NE did, which they probably will if not better. And if PIT's offense takes a cue from NE's second half to pick up the blitz, the Steelers could run away with this.

Broncos fans can say "we won the game and it doesn't matter", but the fact remains NE gave Pittsburgh the blueprint to beat Denver. All they have to do is execute it, and secure the ball.

Actually, Miami gave the league the blueprint for beating us in Week 1. Three teams managed to take advantage of it.

Taco John

01-19-2006, 12:35 PM

The final turnover, Brady's pick, is just a case of desperation and not really relevant.

How is choking when you're behind become "not really relevant?" How does it get to the point where desperation becomes an excuse for turning the ball over? I've seen some excuse making in my time, but nothing like the excuses that get made for Brady when he chokes.

Amnorix

01-19-2006, 12:38 PM

How is choking when you're behind become "not really relevant?" How does it get to the point where desperation becomes an excuse for turning the ball over? I've seen some excuse making in my time, but nothing like the excuses that get made for Brady when he chokes.

Brady made one huge, HUGE error. That was the pick to Bailey. He was avoiding pressure that appears to have been caused by a mix-up in the blocking between Ashworth and Watson, which let a guy come free. (Your defenses are designed to cause pressure, of course, so I give you credit for this). Instead of forcing the ball, he should have thrown it away.

As for the last pick -- if you want to call that choking, feel free, but you and I both know that throwing into triple coverage waaaaay downfield is just the product of being down 2 scores with 3 minutes left. We had no time to mount a "drive", so it was all about trying a prayer.

Completely not relevant in my book. The mistakes we made to lose the game had happened long before that.

dirk digler

01-19-2006, 12:42 PM

I like the Broncos in this game...alot.

Of course I was 0-2 last week picking AFC games. :D

Garcia Bronco

01-19-2006, 03:05 PM

....with 3 minutes left. We had no time to mount a "drive", so it was all about trying a prayer......